


Pillow

by EspurrsVena



Category: Fire Emblem Series, Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: Cats, F/M, Fire Emblem: Three Houses Blue Lions Route, Fluff, Married Life, Post Blue Lions Route, Sleepless night
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-23
Updated: 2019-08-23
Packaged: 2020-09-24 11:21:27
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,416
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20357641
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/EspurrsVena/pseuds/EspurrsVena
Summary: Dimitri has a sleepless night, yet this time the reason is not his nightmares of the past...





	Pillow

There were still times when Dimitri felt like he did not deserve a happy present he was living now. Edelgard was dead, yes, and his family was avengered, yet the ghosts from the past still haunted him from time to time.  
However the reason why he woke up in the middle of night this time was not one of his nightmares It was a small cat who had decided that Dimitri's face was the perfect sleeping spot.

Originally, there were no cats inhabiting the castle of Fhirdiad, yet when he and Byleth moved into the castle, they brought some cats from the monastery with them. Both of them were fond of cats, so they took their favourites with them. Other former members of the Blue Lions were amused about their spoiling of the former monastery strays, yet as long as he and his wife did not have human children, the cats were like kids to them.  
Also, cause Faerghus' emblem was a lion it did not hurt to have some mini lions in the castle they thought.

Yet what hurt were the small claws the cat burried into his forehead to stabilize its position. Gently, not to hurt it or wake it up the king tried to remove the cat from his face yet it burried its claws only deeper into his forehead. So for now he let the cat win. He still could breathe and even through he could not see anything he was pretty sure that the sunrise was still far away.

It was not the first time that a cat was sleeping close to him. Back when he was still too deep into his blood lust, cats were the only beings who did not avoid him. Or rather they did not avoid his coat. They did not care for the smell of death that stuck with him, they only cared for his warmth.

After his return to the destroyed Garreg Mach Monastery he was surprised that the stray cats were still healthy and friendly as during his academic days. They even became very clingy to him when they discovered how comfortable his coat was to sleep on. And even during the time when his mind was clouded by revenge, he could not push them away. It was so much easier to push people away but cats hit his weak point. They were ruthless killers yet at the same time so innocent. He often wished he could be as easygoing as them. He also had to kill to survive yet afterwards he was not able to go back to a carefree self like them. So when the ghosts of the past were not haunting him, he was watching the cats play and live their lifes. It brought at least some tiny peace to his troubled mind.  
Futhermore, they somehow reminded him of his then lost and beloved professor. For most people cats tend to be unreadable and ruthless, yet once you knew them you could read their emotions and how much they cared for others. Just like Byleth...

So during his sleepless nights at the monastery he was always accompanied by the cats. They slept close to him and often on or in his coat. The destroyed place did not offer many places where you were safe from the weather and even through the location of it was much warmer than Fhirdiad, the nights were sometimes freezing. When a cat snuggled to his warmth he was unable to deny that wish. He did not want to risk the life of such an innocent creature by refusing something simple. They were no monsters who deserved punishment like humans.

Despite his best efforts to stay as quiet as possible he felt his beloved stirr next to him. “Dimi?” he heard her sleepy voice. “Are you alright?” Even in the middle of the night, her only worry was him. For the thousands time wondered how he deserved this wonderful woman in his life.  
“It could be better.”, he answered honestly.  
“Another nightma-” Before Byleth could finish the question, he heard a chuckle next to him. “Ah, I see the problem.” Gently she lifted the cat from his face. “Cats really love you, don't they?”  
“I told you that we should close the door at night.”  
“But then they stand in front of the door all night meowing to be let in. They are free animals. Also, we can't deny them their favourite sleeping spot.” Their favourite sleeping spot was still his coat which was laying on a chair with two other cats sleeping on it.  
At the beginning of their relationship there was a harsh competition between Byleth and the cats who was allowed to cuddle with his coat. Eventually, his beloved let the cats win cause she “prefered his chest anyway”. Yet he had to admit that she looked cuter than any kitten in the world when she was half hidden in his huge coat.

Gently, Byleth laid the cat on her pillow while moving her head to his chest. “I know you can not say no to cats, too. I saw you.”  
“What do you mean, my beloved?”, he asked while caressing her hair which was as soft as a cat's fur.  
“Back in the monastery before you became yourself again, I saw you with the cats. You were always so gentle with them and even took off your coat so that the cats could continue to sleep on it. When I saw that, I knew that the old Dimitri still exists and that I can not give up to bring him back.”  
This statement made him fluster. Until this moment he did not even know that Byleth had seen that.  
“No matter what the others said.”, she continued. “That moment proved me that there is still humanity left inside of you, that you are not a monster.”  
“I was a monster. But thanks to you, Rodrigue and the others I got a chance to let my humanity take the lead again.”  
“And thanks to the cats.” she added with a small chuckle.

“Maybe also thanks to them. But honestly, they always reminded me of you.”  
“Let me guess, cause they kill without batting an eye and act afterwards like nothing happened like I did as mercenary? I used to hear that pretty often back then.” He could hear the slight annoyance about that in her voice.  
“I have to admit at first I thought like that. Yet once I got to know you better, I realised that just like a cat you only let the people in who deserve you and once you love someone you tend to become very clingy and love to steal their coat. And you love to eat fish like them.”  
“It is cold here and you are warm. It is only natural that I do that.” She purred. “Also, you are mistaken. Flayn was the fish crazy one of the Blue Lions.”  
“And you purr like a cat when I stroke your hair.”  
“Says the one who purrs like a too huge kitten when I brush his hair in the morning.”, she chuckled.  
Before she could say any more embarrassing things he silenced her with a kiss.

“Dimi, you should sleep. Work is waiting for us tomorrow.” She said when they broke the kiss.  
He did not want to think about it. As much as he wanted to atone for his sins by rebuilding hia country and the continent, he also wanted to be selfish sometimes and spend more time with his equally busy beloved. “If you promise not to make my face your pillow, too, I will sleep, my beloved.”  
“Do not worry. Your chest is much more comfortable anyway.” She moved a little to get into a more comfortable position. “And Dimi? Just like the cats I love you. Maybe this really makes me a cat.”, she said with a yawn.  
”I love you, too, my beloved cat like wife.” Quickly, he felt asleep, too.

The next time he woke up it was because of the sun. His wife was still using his chest as her pillow and the cats which had slept on his coat last night had joined them in the bed. Right now, he did not mind this situation, yet he hoped that it would not become a habit of the cats to sleep in the bed. He certaintly did not want to see them the more private times of him and his wife...

**Author's Note:**

> I love Dimitri and I love cats, so I had to write this.  
I finished the Blue Lions route yesterday, so it's the perfect timing to write something. Unfortunately, the story is unbeta-ed, so I apologize for any mistakes.  
The story is based on a headcanon of mine: The monastery's cats must have loved Dimitri's coat cause it looks fluffy and comfortable. At least my cats would take every chance to take a nap on it...  
Thank you for reading!


End file.
